| "Shannon, I have meant to write so many times since our return home from Scotland, but have been a real slacker. Life has been so full and too busy. Now that the holidays are about done, winter is drawing in the days, so there should be more time for quiet reflection on the year's events. I want to thank you and Mario for the most wonderful vacation of my life. I had the most amazing time! It was so much better than I even imagined. You treat everyone like a family, really. You are careful to put us up in varied and interesting accommodations. You are pretty flexible and build in time to veer off the beaten path when possible. The Sacred Stone Circle at Sun Honey Farm was one of my personal favorites (of many!!). You pack in so much in the time allotted, yet it is rarely rushed. I tell everyone I know about Scottish Dream Tours and how wonderful it is to travel with you. Vivienne and I hope To be able to do it again someday. I love Scotland so much - it felt like Home to me. I miss it so much - but will Have to console myself with my precious memories until the day I can return. I wish you and yours the most wonderful New Year with every Blessing for health, wealth, friendship and happiness!! I will remember you and Mario with great fondness always, Thanks for the memories! Love, Linda Lebo I should probably begin my testimonial by saying I am eagerly awaiting the start of my fifth tour with Shannon. That surely is as much an endorsement as any praise I could heap on, but I won't let that stop me. Having Shannon share his love of Scotland, Wales and Ireland with me has helped me make memories I will treasure forever. Wonderful sights, lovely teas and lodgings and way too many desserts. I missed Prince William by just a week at one lunch stop, sigh. The tours have been so much fun and I have felt completely safe and well looked after that I plan to make them a yearly event until I become fabulously wealthy. At that time you can all stop at my place for tea. I'll take up permanent residence in a stone cottage with a brightly painted front door along one of the routes Shannon will show you. Mind the bunnies and the sheep, their everywhere. Hope to see you on the road." Kim Clark San Antonio, Texas Shannon and Mario, I just wanted to thank you again for such a wonderful trip. It was way beyond amazing! I can't get over the change in my Mom from when we arrived in Edinburgh til now! The trip was a real eye opener to her that there is more to life than just working and getting through each day. Since we've gotten home all she's talked about was how great the trip was and she can't wait to go on another one with you two. She's actually already thinking about getting a group of 6 or 8 of us together and having you two plan and guide us on another tour! So be forewarned!!!! Meghann Agnew - Canada Shannon, Mario, Kathy and Meghann Dear Shannon, Tami and I want to thank you for a wonderful trip! It exceeded our expectations greatly. You and Mario provided an experience that will not be forgotten. We look forward to more adventures with you in the future. Truly sincerely, Eb and Tami Hi Shannon, Sandy and I were reminiscing about our wonderful trip to Scotland. We had such a wonderful time on our tour with you and Mario, we thought we would see what tours you currently had. I see that you already have your 2009 tours posted on the web. Having been on one of your tour I can certainly see why the tours book up so early! Hope you have a fantastic tour this year. Sam Slough I just wanted to say our small personalized tour with you was the way to go. We would not tour any other way. We are checking our schedules for 2009 and hoping that we can get a tour booked soon. We are looking forward to returning to Scotland. Remembering you and Mario fondly, Sandy Slough "After short reflection, our experience on tour was nothing short of fabulous! Chris has a particularly fine picture of the two of you at the Breaghmore Stones. At your suggestion we toured the Cotswolds one day out of London. The day trip showed us bus tours of ANYTHING are astronomically inferior to what we had so recently become accustomed to! We are talking up Scottish Dream Tours to anyone who will listen and sincerely hope to see you again on a future tour. Please know that you are free to use us as reference." Alan & Chris Jones |
| In July, 2009, to celebrate our 30- year anniversary, my wife and I took a two-week tour along with eight others with Shannon through Ireland, N. Ireland and Scotland. We were also fortunate enough to meet Mario in Edinburgh near the end of our tour. One traveler was a “returnee”…this time, bringing her father. EVERYTHING was as advertised…. and so much more! Shannon is equal parts tour guide, coach and teacher. He intimately knows the various areas we visited, and he was frequently met by local business owners with a hug or a warm handshake. Molding nine strangers into a cohesive tour group isn’t easy, yet within a day or two, everyone was getting along famously. Shannon is very patient, dealing with all the inevitable “What’s this”, and “What does that mean?” questions. He also challenges you to learn on your own, which definitely adds to the overall experience. On the very rare occasions Shannon DIDN’T have the answer to a question, he took the time to find out and got back to us. It’s obvious from his ancestry, his love of this area and his past experience that this is not just a business for him…he truly wants others to connect with the land, the people, the culture. There was more than adequate time to see things that we wanted to see, separate from Shannon’s otherwise excellent itinerary. We never felt rushed to “hurry up and see the sights” and the accommodations were excellent. A few minor “slip ups” occurred (none of them Shannon’s fault) and he is proactive enough that he either already had a back-up plan in place, or he put it out to the group for a decision as to what to do next. Would we recommend Scottish Dream Tours to others? We already have! Friends…coworkers…family members have all been advised that Scottish Dream Tours is the way to go. Thanks, Shannon, for a VERY memorable trip! Neil and Stella Mackey Bend, OR "After mulling our trip with you, I have to conclude it was exceptional. I only wish that at the beginning I had a map with which I could have traced our journey. We saw many slices of Scottish history that many Scots have never seen. My CD of pics will be in the mail but it doesn't convey the whole experience. Hoping you and Mario have a happy Holiday and continued success." Dr Jim McGregor Waco, Texas Shannon and Mario, This was indeed a fabulous trip in so many ways. Not only was I in awe of the breathtaking scenery and the fact of just being there where so much history of my ancestors took place, the itinerary was fantastic, the accommodations lovely, but the added pleasure of having the company of such a delightful tour group made the journey that much better. I know making this all happen is a monumental task, and it is evident that both of you are talented and most dedicated to the task. My sincere thanks for all that you did to make this 14 days of memories I will treasure always. No doubt that I will be back for another adventure! Sincerely, Marsha Elliott Hello Shannon and Mario, This is a very belated note to thank you for the well planned trip in Scotland. I recently went on a bus trip to New England and again I realized how much nicer our small group tour was. I don't think Bob could have handled any other kind of tour. You were so kind and considerate to everyone, particularly Bob. We have lots of pictures and we often speak of both of you and the things we saw and did. Julia Orr Shannon, Thanks you for your amazing knowledge of a country that is so very dear to both of us. My purpose in taking this trip was to show my son Tom his heritage and the meaning of why I named him after my Scottish father. We have had a wonderful time. It could not have been better. Lorna & Craig Ibbitson Shannon, This trip has been so amazing. Everything you have done for us has been incredible. Thank you so much for the places you brought us, the places we have stayed and for the food we have eaten. This has been a trip of a life time for me and to see Scotland as you have shown us has been the best way it could have ever been done. I just can't say enough to tell you how great this has been and I thank you from the bottom of my heart! Tom Ibbitson Hullo Shannon~ Things have gotten back to normal (whatever that is) and I wanted to just drop a note to let you know how much we enjoyed the tour. We were impressed with your knowledge and awareness of Scottish history and your ability to find off-the-beaten- path locations that gave us some real insights into Scotland. When we tell friends about the way you and Mario attended to us, they are astonished that the tour could have been so personalized. There remains much that we did not see, so we may well visit Scotland, particularly the Hebrides, again. If we do, rest assured we will ask you to plan the tour for us. I will take a "wee dram" in remembrance of a truly wonderful time. Our best to you and Mario (MacTorres, that is). Tony and Cindy My husband and I were a bit apprehensive about joining a "tour" for our first trip to Ireland and Scotland. However, from our first meeting at the airport to our sendoff 12 days later, every detail was taken care of and all our needs were anticipated and timely met. Shannon not only knew a great deal about the history of the areas visited, he also knew the best places to eat and stay. We will certainly book another tour with Scottish Dream Tours in the very near future." Jim and Becky Goodman |
| Dear Shannon and Mario, Thanks again for the most enjoyable trip. Having traveled the UK since 1989 with various small groups, we found the relaxed atmosphere and coddling by both of you to have created one of the most memorable tours we have taken, Your sense of humor, extensive knowledge of the venues, Mario's expert driving, and never having to shuffle our luggage made our tour, hopefully, the first of many more with Scottish Dream Tours. Best wishes for continued success and looking forward to our 2009 trip. Bob and Dar Marsh Dear Shannon, Many thanks for a fantastic holiday - I can't think of a single thing that you could have done to make it better. The good weather continued for the rest of our stay right up until the last day of our visit to Oxford and by that time we had done all of the outdoor things so it didn't matter. Being home has been a real challenge. I have too much to do but I have made a resolution that next year I'll be spending more time relaxing. I have attached a photo but you probably have received a similar one from one of the others that is almost certainly better than mine. Hope all is going well for you. My best wishes to you and Mario and we'll meet again next year. Regards, Jan Lyall( in red jumper) Ulladulla, Australia Hello Shannon & Mario, Sorry it has taken me so long to get back to you regarding our trip. I wanted to say thanks for a wonderful trip. I really enjoyed myself. Ireland and Scotland are so beautiful. I can understand why you enjoy doing tours in that part of the world. Wee enjoyed Mario’s company…he did a great job and was a lot of fun. I’ve attached 2 pictures of Mario with his “wayward children”…one was taken the first night in Dublin and the other at The Queen’s View. I hope that we didn’t “scar” him for life! Again thanks for showing us Ireland and Scotland…we all had a wonderful time. Have fun on all of your upcoming tours. Ivalou O’Dell Shannon & Mario-- Thanks again for a grand tour! I've attached a couple of pix. Let me know if you want hard copies. I am rereading Samuel Johnson's A Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland. Lots of fun after having seen some of the places--like his "clear" waters of Loch Ness! (The copy I have is an ancient paperback, bound in with James Boswell's The Journal of a Tour to the Hebrides with Samuel Johnson--perhaps the combo is still in print.) I think it would give you some useful information for your tours. All the best, Dennis and Linda Shannon We have moved into our new abode, and loving it. No more steps and lots of old folks activities. We will answer any questions about our trip to any prospects you have. I told you it was a history lesson that never was given in school. Our trip was well worth the effort at our age. And "E" for excellence was the only grade we would put on it. As for you and Mario who got the pulse of the group right off, we can only say there is no other way to go. So thank you and good luck as the future looks good for you both. Cary & Eveline LeBlanc Dear Shannon, Thank you for such a memorable Scottish experience. We've had such a good time that we hate to leave! If we did not have something already scheduled we would just join your next tour. You and Mario have been so good to us, we will think of you kindly always. Please stay in touch and we can't wait for the Cotswolds Tour in 2008. Fondly, Mary Lou and Yolanda ( Yo Yo & Lu Lu) |
| Testimonials Cead Mil Failte! The majority of our business now seems to come from previous clients and referrals from previous clients. We are very proud of the fact that so much of our business for 2010 involves people who are on their second, third, fourth and fifth tour with Scottish Dream Tours. Our main goal is to make you feel like part of the family and to see, hear and feel Scotland, Ireland, Wales and England in the same way we do. If you don't go home loving these places as much as we do, then we have not properly done our job! Come join us for an adventure of a lifetime or a holiday that you will always treasure. |
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